EARLY STRUGGLES: Eli Manning (inset), Domenik Hixon and the Giants were unable to get much going during Wednesday night's season-opening loss to the Cowboys, and a lot of work must be done to get the defending champions back on the right track. Photo: EPA; Getty Images

The harsh reality has now set in that this is indeed a new season and old problems haven’t faded away just because there’s a shiny new piece of hardware in the trophy case.

If the Giants harbored any other ideas they were dashed and can be put away, forever.

“The idea of us coming into the regular season full-speed ahead and with our issues under control — that’s obviously not the case,’’ an impassioned coach Tom Coughlin said Thursday.

Any and every issue the Giants feared they might carry over from their Super Bowl season to this season accompanied them across the bridge Coughlin wants to build. Not enough depth at cornerback. An inability to run the ball, especially in short yardage situations. Inconsistency in stopping the run. The Giants navigated around those problems, steadied themselves and were magnificent in a closing run that produced another championship. But after the Cowboys ruined the after-party by opening this season with a 24-17 victory it is abundantly clear the festivities have ended.

“Grind, grind a little bit,’’ Coughlin said by way of a challenge to his 0-1 team. “Forget about all the smoke being blown. This is a new year and a new team.’’

To emphasize that point, Coughlin chastised himself, saying, “I got to be careful making references’’ to last season.

It sure sounded as if the point hit home in a locker room described as “very somber’’ by Coughlin.

“A sense of urgency is starting to set in,’’ linebacker Michael Boley said. “Just because we had some high expectations, for the game and team-wise we didn’t achieve those goals. And so, guys coming today, are really starting to refocus on some things that we need to be better at.’’

Asked if he agreed with the theory the Cowboys looked and played as if they wanted the game more than the Giants, Snee didn’t offer any dismissal.

“If you were an outsider and you watched the game, that’s what you would see,’’ Snee said. “Now, I’m not going to sit here and say I didn’t want that thing badly because I did and I think everyone in this locker room did. We just didn’t play sharp football, we didn’t play consistent football, we didn’t earn any chance to win.’’

Coughlin pulled no punches, saying his players did not prepare sufficiently for the season opener.

“Two of the three practices last week quite frankly weren’t good enough,’’ he said.

Coughlin railed about an offensive line that “didn’t do anything to anybody’’ and an air attack that “didn’t pass the ball very well’’ and “didn’t catch the ball very well.”

Asked about his benching of David Wilson after the rookie fumbled on his second NFL carry, Coughlin’s eyes widened.

“This is serious business now,’’ the 66-year old head coach said, stressing he was trying to win a game, not soothe the psyche of a 21-year old running back.

“It puts you in a place where you’ve got to realize that just by you being Super Bowl champs you’re not going to go out there and take anyone lightly or take things for granted,’’ Blackburn said. “We still have to practice the way we did at the end of last yearto get ourselves in position to win on Sundays.’’

Justin Tuck tweeted, “Nobody said it was easy to build a bridge’’ and there was none among the Giants to disagree.

“He’s right,’’ Boley said. “Obviously, after yesterday, it shows we have a long way to go. … We didn’t play up to our standards as a team, not just as a defense. So, we definitely have a lot of work to put in to build that bridge.’’

Coughlin vowed: “There will be a renewed conviction about preparation and practice. We do know that we have a lot of work to do.”